


Playing For Keeps

by CallMeSenpai72



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: A pack of idiots, All of the Snark, Bullying, Christmas Special, Drama, Eating Disorders, F/M, First Love, Food - so much food, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Idiocy inducing behavior, Non-Graphic Violence, O.C and Atsumu are vitriolic best buds, O.C constantly being asked if she mixes up the twins, Onsen special, Romantic Comedy, Sexual Themes, Stubborn O.C, Swearing, Teen boys are stupid, VB players with babies is not safe, eventual pregnancy, losing virginity, not-so-sweet O.C, perverted jokes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:13:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27744298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CallMeSenpai72/pseuds/CallMeSenpai72
Summary: Recently transferred 2nd Year Hanabusa Reika is what most people would consider a problem-child. Due to constantly moving schools, she needs to take on some form of club membership in order to supplement the gaps in her high school career. However, the only thing that doesn’t bore her to death at the mere thought is the Shogi club and to her dismay, it’s full. On her way to grovel for a place, the sickly girl is happened upon by the volleyball Captain. After a misunderstanding and some underhanded persuading on his part, she is roped into helping out as the team’s manager.Fate is not content with merely throwing her off her expected course and intends to make her struggle with not just her health and her peers, but with the whims and wiles of the the volleyball team members as well. What starts out as trivial club activities turns into temporarily living with the twins.Before she can pack up and move on just like every other time before, she realizes that she has something she wants to stay for.
Relationships: Miya Osamu/Reader, Suna Rintarou & Reader
Comments: 5
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Playing For Keeps**   
A mighty flame follows a tiny spark.  
  
 **Theme Song**  
Take on Me - Hidden Citizens  
&  
Grace - Lewis Capaldi  
  
 **Genre**  
Rom-Com, Drama, Angst, Fluff  
  
 **Fandom**  
Haikyū!  
  
 **Characters**  
Miya Osamu, Miya Atsumu, Kita Shinsuke, Suna Rintaro, appearances from other Inarizaki team members. [O.C] Hanabusa Reika.  
  
Pairings  
Miya Osamu x O.C (Main) / Suna x O.C (Teased)  
  
 **Start Date**  
6th November 2020  
  
 **End Date**  
\--/--/--  
  
 **Warnings**  
Swearing, Bullying/Mentions of Eating Disorders, Occasional Violence, Sexual Themes, Perverted Jokes, Detriment to O.C’s mental health through the team's stupidity. Later: VB boys with babies.

* * *

* * *

**Theme Songs**   
  


  
**Hanabusa Reika**  
Dead Inside - Younger Hunger  
  
 **Miya Osamu**  
Fix You - Vicetone  
  
 **Miya Atsumu**  
Mug Shot - MAX  
  
 **Kita Shinsuke**  
High Hopes - Panic! At The Disco  
  
 **Suna Rintar ō**  
Raise Your Glass - Pink  
  
 **Ojiro Aran**  
The Phoenix - Fall Out Boy

* * *

* * *


	2. I’ve Seen A Hentai That Starts Like This…

  
  
Deep into her mind spinning off in a tangent, a girl in an incorrect uniform wandered the empty hallways. Eyes darting and sweating more than she’d like to at any given time, the out of place female clenched and relaxed her hands out of habit. It was Thursday afternoon and she’d foolishly told one of the teachers she’d been meeting with that she would be able to find the clubroom she was now in a panic searching for. Classes had ended over an hour ago, so there wasn’t even anybody around to ask. Looking at the map she’d been given of the campus buildings, her curses spewed as much as her sweat. Spinning around with her arms out, her eyes turned white as she gnashed her teeth.  
  
“Where the fuck is it?!”  
  
Despite hearing rushed footsteps advancing, what little attention she had left from her outburst was not afforded to her surroundings. Before either party could process the other, the back of the girl’s wrist connected with something hard. Startled more by the yelp than the fact she’d just unintentionally back-handed a boy not too much taller than her, the transfer stared at her hand as if it was _Migi_ from _Parasyte_ and it had just attacked of its own free will.  
  
The victim - a boy with sooty-tipped silver hair and wearing sportswear - held the assaulted spot, his eyes wide and fixed on the girl.  
  
Brain restarting, the female bowed her head thrice as her arms flung out instinctively to check if her victim was okay. In the process, her paperwork and bag flew into the air as if they were trying to escape the walking disaster.  
  
Watching the performance of the student in a vastly different uniform drop down to the floor mumbling curses, the boy couldn’t help but to let a small laugh escape at her fluster. Crouching to help her collect her scattered belongings, the silver haired boy held out what he had collected but paused when he caught the sight of a transcript peeking out of the top. “Is this your first day?”  
  
“Huh-” looking up in a rush, the side of her head connected with his chin, knocking them both back onto their rears. Yowling and hissing filled the corridor. Hand to her head, more shielding her eyes in mortification than pain, the girl croaked. “My name’s Hanabusa Reika; 2nd Year. I’m so sorry for assaulting you…Twice. Please don’t sue me.”  
  
Waving off the possibility with the hand not stroking his newest injury, he extended the gesture to help her up. Getting to her feet with his aid, Hanabusa gave another profuse apology.  
  
“I’m sorry, really. I’m just in a rush; I’ve been in a meeting with the Principle most of the day filling out paperwork and going through-” Her thoughts reorganized halfway through her sentence, and an array of bizarre expressions flashed across her chubby face within a couple of seconds, “I need to find a certain clubroom before they leave for the evening-”  
  
“-Why don’t you join my club?”  
  
“You don’t even know what my interests are.”  
  
“It doesn’t make a difference.”  
  
“Excuse me?” Her brows furrowed and the boy corrected what she had clearly misinterpreted.  
  
“I wasn’t trying to dismiss you.” Amber eyes creased a little at the outer corners when he gave a warm smile. “But we’re in dire need of a manager.”  
  
“You want me to give up something I enjoy just because you need something? How selfish can you be?”  
  
“Well, let’s call it an out of court settlement.”  
  
The gentle smile which was barely there prodded Hanabusa the wrong way. Many things grated on her, but she really hated people who thought they could get their own way just because. That being said, she wasn’t in the position to be making enemies, especially on her first day. Also, she _did_ kind of owe him after blindly beating the poor guy.  
  
“What kind of club is it?”  
  
“Come with me and you’ll see.”  
  
“I was warned by my dad not to follow strange guys…”  
  
“Am I strange?”  
  
“A little.”  
  
Grinning as far as she was sure his face would allow, the boy placed her bag strap onto his shoulder. “It’s refreshing to speak to a girl so honest.”  
  
“What does my gender have to do with my personality?”  
  
“Not to sound like I’m blowing my own horn, but we’re a kinda big deal.” Holding open a fire-door so she could pass without issue, the boy tried to think of a better way to word his opinions but came up short. “The team has a lot of over zealous…fans. Primarily female.”  
  
“You do.”  
  
“ _Do_ what?”  
  
“Sound like you’re blowing your own horn.”  
  
Snorting out a burst of air, the boy glanced to the female who was following him despite the parental warning. “You’ll see when you see, I guess.”  
  
“Well, you _are_ holding my bag hostage, so I suppose you’re not wrong.”  
  
“You could have asked for it back.”  
  
“I could have just _taken_ it back if I really had no interest at all.”  
  
Examining the tall frame made up of muscular thighs and strong back muscles made apparent by her posture, the boy knew it best not to stare too long. With her chubby face, and overly plump bust and hips, it was a danger zone. For a split-second, he almost forgot where he was going. “I wonder.”  
  
“Hehhhh~” Voice pushed out higher than before, Hanabusa cooed with a twitching brow. “Do I look like a damsel or summat to you?”  
  
Brows raised at the coarse slang which was obviously more natural than the formal tone she’d been using prior, the boy wafted away the frazzled air.  
  
“Not at all, which is why I’m asking you to join our club.” Coming to a block of stairs, the boy who had yet to introduce himself skipped down the narrow steps as if he would be able to do it with his eyes closed. “But I’m not as meek as I look, either.”  
  
“I was warned about boys from this school.”  
  
“Oh, yeah?”  
  
“My dad’s an Alumni; he told me foxes are one of the most tricky predators to deal with.”  
  
“That must make you uneasy then-”  
  
“-Not really. Because after all, Tanuki are the wittiest of all and I am nothing short of the child of the smartest Tanuki to ever attend Inarizaki.”  
  
“That’s quite the claim. Lot’s of intelligent people have graduated from Inarizaki - some of them are even still here.” Making it outside and under the sheltered walkway which led to the gym, the sky rum and violet behind the high buildings in the last minutes before the sun set, the boy paused with an odd expression just before he reached for the door handle. “Please don’t turn shy when you meet the rest of the team.”  
  
“I don’t know what that is.”  
  
“Great to hear.” Opening the door, the male half of the pair signalled his arrival and a dozen boys showed respectful greetings until they set eyes on the girl behind him.  
  
“Iiiieeeeyaaaahhhh~ Kita San brought a girl!”  
  
“Related?” The blonde half of the pair which were clearly twins quirked his brow.  
  
“We look nothing alike, you moron.”  
  
The grey haired other half, for the first time since the day’s practice began, agreed with his brother. “Nah, Senpai, you do kinda look similar.”  
  
“Piss off.”  
  
The first-string had stopped what they were doing and had congregated around the pair by the door. The half black-half Japanese member glanced from Kita, to the girl in the uniform which didn’t belong to their school, and then back to his silver-haired year-mate. “They’re right, Shinsuke; you look like you could be siblings.”  
  
“Not you, too, Aran?”  
  
Back up at the stiff rebuttal to his teammates, Hanabusa scowled. “Why are you getting mad? Am I ugly to you?”  
  
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Kita glowered at his teammates before doing a one-eighty, relaxing his shoulders while wafting his hand at the girl. “That’s not what I meant.”  
  
“He’s so into himself that he found a girl that looks like him.”  
  
The boy who’d arrived late took a running jump-kick at the chortler. Knee connecting with the taller boy’s hip, Kita yapped with narrowed brows. “That’s fifty dives for you, Atsumu!”  
  
Ignoring the playful violence and the questioning over his near-split lip, Hanabusa scoured the vastness of the interior of what was the gym. She was used to small-town community centres and five-a-side soccer pitches at her previous schools which were barely ever full even when there was a competition. This place was a joke. There were two full teams playing on the court split in half by a net which reached from near the ceiling down to the floor, and even the upper half of the building had an interior viewing balcony. What the hell kind of school was this? It wasn’t a school at all, it was a goddamn-  
  
“Looks like your sister-date is looking a bit woozy.”  
  
“Don’t you start, Suna.”  
  
Wary line of sight taking in the wobbling girl, the Libero tilted his head with his hands out a little from his torso. “Are you okay?”  
  
Vision clouding and skin prickling, Hanabusa tottered to the side in an attempt to keep her balance when her joints gave her a familiar warning. “Uh, not again. Fuck…” Before all attention could focus on her, she flopped backwards into something not quite as uncomfortable as she’d expected. Voices blurred with the control of her muscles deflating and her sight faded to black.  
  
-  
  
[Twenty Minutes Later]  
  
Lids fluttering open, Hanabusa tried to figure out what was going on from the strange angle. She could partially see the gym lights past her feet, but she was in darkness. Her body was laid out on foam gym mats, her feet raised, and her blazer removed. When each piece began to groggily fit into place, a cold wash of adrenaline barbed her muscles.  
  
“Oh, she’s waking up-”  
  
Jolting forward, the girl threw hands, swatting the boys who gathered around her.  
  
“Ah, fuck!”  
  
“It’s okay-”  
  
“Stop screaming.”  
  
“You put her in a store cupboard and loomed over her as she was waking up.” A more monotonous tone quipped. “I’d scream too - waking up to your impending mug.”  
  
“It said on the WikiHow to keep people who faint out of bright light.” Frantic footsteps paced off to her left and a panicked voice pushed out his words at a rushed speed. “If we turned off all the gym lights when a girl fainted, that seems even more suspicious.”  
  
“My sheer beauty and greatness literally knocked her off her feet.”  
  
“Shut the hell up, Atsumu!”  
  
Vision clearing but head still throbbing, Hanabusa groaned and reached for the back of her head out of habit. Looking at her hand in the sparse light, her brows furrowed. “No blood?”  
  
“You fell into Suna and he caught you before you could hit the floor.”  
  
“After she knocked me over,” Atsumu scoffed. “’Girl’s damn heavy.”  
  
“I-I’m sorry.” Sitting up, she realized that half a dozen boys were sat around her pensively. “I’m-” and then something else clicked in her mind and her lack of filter smacked her company with the last thing they’d expect to hear. “I’ve seen a hentai that starts like this.”  
  
Flabbergasted, Kita expelled a heavy breath. “I was about to call an ambulance.”  
  
“Don’t do that.”  
  
“It could have been serious.”  
  
“Mind your own business.” Shuffling and squirming to stand up, Hanabusa glanced around for her things. “I told you earlier that I was looking for another club but you just had to insist.”  
  
Aran handed her what she was seemingly looking for. Turning back to the boy who had dragged her along, she sniffled her nose clear. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so humiliated by a stranger.”  
  
“What’s there to be humiliated about?”  
  
“I just used your teammate as a mattress before passing out. I didn’t want to come here to begin with but my own goddamn curiosity messed things up again.”  
  
Kita stood up and held his hand out to help the girl up just as he had when they first met not even an hour ago. “If you really want nothing to do with us, I’ll walk you out…”  
  
“Don’t bother.” Standing up by herself, and turning to the number 10 and 7 bibs, she inclined her head in a deep bow. “Thanks for preventing me from cracking my gourd open again.” Doing the same, only to the rest of the team, she held the back of her wrist to her nose and thanked them for their time and concern. “I wish you the best of luck with…whatever you do.” She gestured around with her index finger as her other hand held the side of her head. “Sorry to trouble you all.” Walking out the same way she had came in, Hanabusa felt an overwhelming relief when her skin was drenched in frigid evening air.  
  
Taking a moment to inhale a slow, deep breath while still under the protection of the sheltered walkway which led back into one of the main school buildings, the girl’s knees shook.  
  
After a few minutes of awkward glances and silence, Aran gave up on trying to play the mental version of Telephone. “I’ll go and make sure she can get out of the gates okay.” Ready to give chase, he was met by the female’s back just barely outside of where the gym’s lights reached. “I’m sorry if we scared you; that wasn’t our intention.”  
  
“It wasn’t fear that caused that.” Pulling her cell out of her bag, she pinched her lips without looking up. “Do you know the number for a cab?”  
  
“For where?”  
  
“The hotel near the station. I don’t know the area and there’s nobody I can call to pick me up.”  
  
“You’re going to stay in a hotel by yourself? That’s scary.”  
  
“My dad works away a lot and there’s been an unforeseeable family circumstance, so I’m here for the next few months.” Hooking her blazer over the main portion of her bag rather than putting it on despite the dropping temperatures as winter set in, the exchange student glanced up to the boy who had come after her. “I don’t even know how to get out of here.”  
  
“That’s why I came to find you.” Smile brightening at the fact she didn’t seem like she was going to bite his head off like she had just done his year-mate, Aran gestured around the side of the building which paralleled the baseball field. “I hope you can stay.”  
  
“You don’t even know me.”  
  
“You make Shinsuke crack a smile and you don’t seem like the shrinking wall-flower type.” Jogging as he kept in time with the shorter girl’s pace, the boy still wearing his #4 bib huffed hot air into clasped hands. “We were all happy when the captain said you’d be our manager.”  
  
“I never said I would. I was coerced and tricked into coming along.” Peeking to the man who was clearly bothered by the temperature, Hanabusa rooted through the bag resting against her left ribs. Giving an underhand toss, a small heated beanie pack found it’s way into her company’s grasp. “Don’t go getting a fever on my behalf.”  
  
Smile beaming brighter than any of the lighting fixtures, Aran gave a thumbs up. “Nice~” His glee was cut short when he paid attention to what the girl was actually wearing. There was no way she could be anywhere near comfortable in a short-sleeved button-down and a pleated skirt which was at least three inches shorter at the back. If he thought about it, it was probably her last school’s summer uniform. “Why don’t you put your blazer on; it’s cold.”  
  
“The last place I went to school was in Western Hokkaido - I’m literally melting in this humid Kansai weather, even in what you guys call winter. Do you even get snow down here?”  
  
“They had you were that in Hokkaido?”  
  
“I generally wore tights.”  
  
“Nah, no, that’s definitely not what I meant.”  
  
Coming to a side set of gates that were left open, presumably for the clubs who used the buildings surrounding the back of the campus and its fields, Hanabusa held her hand up in appreciation. “Thanks for walking me out. You really didn’t have to, especially after the way I snapped at your teammate. I coulda found my way if you just told me the direction.”  
  
“It’s dark already and you’re not wearing our uniform yet. I hate to say it, but there are some pretty unsavoury types who hang around here.” Holding his hand out, he continued. “I’ll call you a cab and put in the club’s socials as I wait until it arrives.”  
  
Huffing out a small breath, Hanabusa rolled her eyes for the over-kill. “I’m perfectly capable of looking after myself.”  
  
“Yeah, I heard. Aren’t you a tanuki who can tame even a fox?”  
  
“Did that little shit say that?”  
  
Aran’s eyes popped open wide at the female’s wording. “That guy you’re referring to is your senior, y’know?”  
  
“Ehh?”  
  
“Kita Shinsuke is in his final year and the Inarizaki first-string Captain.”  
  
“If he has that much pull, why didn’t he just induct one of the many fangirls he was so sure about having?”  
  
“Because they’re fangirls. He wanted somebody who cares about how we do, not how we look.” Finishing up adding the contact details to a memo note, Aran rubbed the back of his head to warm up his neck stiffening in the bluster he was blocking the girl from. “That’s all any of us ask for. Nobody can really help how they look, but when we work so hard to break our limits to achieve our dreams and all we get from our own peers is squeals or grimaces at our appearances, it’s kinda disheartening, y’know?”  
  
“You’re preaching to the choir…” Realizing that she hadn’t introduced herself in her meltdown, Hanabusa inclined her head in a rush. “I’m sorry, I’m not usually so rude. I’m Hanabusa Reika, second year.”  
  
“Ojiro Aran, your senior.”  
  
“Oh, God. My apologies. I really am never this ignorant.”  
  
“Don’t worry about it. I heard from Shinsuke that it’s your first day.”  
  
“Not officially. I had to come in to do an induction and sign paperwork; I haven’t had any classes yet.”  
  
“Do you know which class you’re in yet?”  
  
“2A.”  
  
“Hmmm~ I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”  
  
“I don’t like the way you said that.”  
  
“Please reconsider Shinsuke’s offer of becoming our manager.” Catching headlights approaching, Aran held his hand out and waved to the driver who slowed down to look for their fare. “We take good care of our own, Hanabusa Chan.” Opening the back door of the taxi for the girl and waiting until she got her legs in, he made sure to speak loud enough for the driver to hear. “Don’t forget to let us know when you get back. The entire team is waiting on you.” Giving another thumbs up just out of view from the rear-view mirror, he closed the door for the girl and waved as he saw her off.  
  
  


* * *

* * *

Updated: 6th December 2020 - 17:24

* * *

* * *


	3. Are You Trying to Be The Main Heroine of a Shōjo Manga?

  
  
  
  
_[The Following Day - Friday]_  
  
  
Class 2A had settled into their seats and their tutor broke the silence usually used for self-reflection and organizing notes.  
  
“Today, we greet a new student. I know it’s later in the year than usual but needs must. Please be kind and help her along.” Gesturing to the person peeking through the glass at the top of the door, the teacher stepped away from the small podium just as the barrier slid open. “Please come in and introduce yourself.”  
  
The girl entered the classroom with a strut regardless of knowing she looked different from the rest even without the uniform. “Good morning. My name is Hanabusa Reika. My father works across the country, meaning I have to move a lot but in the time I’m here, I hope we can be amicable.”  
  
Scowling, the girl seated closest to the door inspected the newcomer and hissed. “Amicable? Who does she think she is?”  
  
“She’s tubby for her age.”  
  
“Hana- _buta_ ,” the first girl scoffed and her friend sniggered at the play-on-words.  
  
The teacher heard the snide remarks - everyone heard them - but chose to ignore the petty name-calling. “Hanabut-busa, you’re at the back, by the window.”  
  
As if the bullshit wasn’t enough with the transfer alone, she was placed between two members of Inarizaki royalty. Clenching her jaw, Hanabusa made for where she was directed. “Excuse me for disturbing you,” she murmured under her breath as she sat down on the last seat on the column by the windows.  
  
Inching away from his desk, the boy with a grey undercut whispered to the newcomer without turning around. When she ignored him, he slid a note along the window sill.  
  
 _‘Join our club.’_  
  
She pushed back the note as her dominant hand began to write the header from the board in her notebook.  
  
 _‘No.’_  
  
Leaning back in his seat until it was almost on its two back legs, the boy ahead of her spoke just loud enough for her to hear. “Because you fainted?”  
  
“Honestly, all of you are so sure of yourselves. Sorry to say, but me passing out has nothing to do with your great club.”  
  
“Really?”  
  
“Not everyone is dazzled by you.”  
  
“You’re one in a million here.”  
  
“I prefer to use my brain for other th-”  
  
“-Hanabusa Chan, are you passing notes on your first day?”  
  
“Yes, Sensei,” halting the hissy-whispering conversation she was having with the #11, the newcomer faced forward and looked the teacher dead in the eye. “I’m trying to deal with the harassment from the volleyball team.”  
  
Every single person in the room snapped their attention to the girl as if she’d just kicked a kitten. Rather than rebuking and calling her out on what was the rules, the teacher merely rolled his eyes and berated her choice.  
  
“Tch, do you think you’re better than us?”  
  
Not expecting that kind of scolding, Hanabusa stood up. Palms on her desk, she spoke as if reading a passage from a textbook she was yet to receive. “I don’t think I’m better nor worse than anyone here but you, Sensei.” Using her desk for support, her skin prickled and her insides trembled. Eyes burning holes into her, her throat tightened up but she refused to be picked on for such trivial reasons. “No real teacher would try to drag a student unless they’re lacking themselves.”  
  
Flustered, the teacher barked, “that’s a detention for you, Hanabusa.”  
  
“Sensei, she already signed our club membership,” the boy ahead of the newcomer spoke up.  
  
“Is that right, Osamu? When did she?”  
  
More surprised than the apparent authoritarian, Hanabusa croaked, “yes, when _did_ I?”  
  
“Rei Chan exchanged her troubles for working as our manager.” Osamu wafted a sheet of paper madly before shooting a glance to his teammate diagonally back and to his right. “Right, Rin?”  
  
The addressed - Suna Rintarō - mumbled as he pored over a thick textbook with a deep scowl. “Don’t involve me; I need to catch up on this anthology.”  
  
As she was sitting down, Hanabusa caught sight of the sheet of paper Osamu had been brandishing. The fucking thing was blank bar a very dodgy scribble. From what she could make out before he slipped it inside his notebook, it appeared to be a deformed cartoon of an onigiri with limbs and a face. Creepy.  
  
The glares from earlier had solidified from agitation to pure abhorrence. Great, just what she needed.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
Finishing the majority of the morning classes, 2A filtered out of the classroom in order to attend gym. The boy who had spoke up on Hanabusa’s behalf shifted her bag onto his shoulder as natural as brushing his teeth. “The next game is a practice against a casual team so we can take it easy”, he informed Suna, who was practically asleep with his eyes open when Kita had informed them of the next match earlier that morning.  
  
“Can I have my bag back, please?”  
  
“But Kita San still wants us there.”  
  
Suna glanced from the girl clenching her fists and to his teammate, “Osamu...”  
  
“What are your plans for this weekend?"  
  
“Asshole, give me my bag.”  
  
Turning around and looking down to the newcomer, the vulgarly addressed smiled. “What do you think?”  
  
“I think the Captain and twins of the volleyball club are-”  
  
“-Yes?”  
  
“Ignorant cunts.” Taking her bag back from him with so much force that he lurched forward a step, Hanabusa staggered in the opposite direction.  
  
Off kilter from the shift in weight, she fell into the desk behind. Both she and the table clattered to the ground. Horrified, Osamu and Suna rushed to her aid. Flopping like a fish out of water, she smacked their hands away with a gruff mumble. A few seconds passed but she showed no sign of getting up.  
  
“Should I call for someone?”  
  
Head down, Hanabusa chewed the inside of her lip. Sight down, she clung to the worktops either side of her head. “I don’t have anyone to call. I just need a minute.”  
  
“You can’t stay like that all day.”  
  
“Let us help you.”  
  
“I don’t want help.” Muscles tensing as much as her body would allow, which just happened to be so feeble that they may as well not have worked at all, she bore holes into the linoleum with a venomous glower. “I don’t want any of this.”  
  
Sharing a glance, Osamu and Suna hooked their arms under hers, already expecting another wave of beating. “We’re gonna lift you up now, ‘kay?” Doing just that, they helped her to unsteady feet and quickly eased her down into the closest seat.  
  
Covering her face with her arms, she felt her entire nervous system frazzle. “Leave me be. You’ve done enough.”  
  
One hand on his hip, the other scratching the back of his head, Osamu inspected the girl for any external injuries. “There’s no way I’d leave anyone who looks as upset as you do.”  
  
“I’m only upset because of your pity.”  
  
“I don’t think of it as pity. You’re our manager, aren’tcha?”  
  
“Are you all idiots, or do you just want somebody to do your paperwork that desperately?”  
  
“Can’t it be both?”  
  
Finally looking up only to give serious stink-eye, Hanabusa’s flushed face scrunched up. “You’re really not going to give up, are you?”  
  
The Wing-Spiker grinned as though he’d just won a wary battle. Suna gave a bland version as he held up a lax peace-sign. “You don’t have anything else to do, right?”  
  
“Rude. I could be extremely busy.”  
  
“Are you?”  
  
“That’s not the point.”  
  
“We have gym next. Let’s walk down together.”  
  
“I have a medical exemption, so I’ll be going to the library.”  
  
“What’s the actual issue-”  
  
“Osamu…Don’t just ask people things like that.”  
  
“I’m not going to talk about it with a stranger.”  
  
“Fair enough. You can though, y’know?”  
  
“Thanks, but I think I’ll speak to someone qualified if I need to talk about my issues.”  
  
“Whatever you say. Still, the library’s on the way so we’ll walk you and pick you up after we’re done with gym.”  
  
“I’m not an invalid, and I certainly don’t need a babysitter.”  
  
“Don’t be fussy; we’re classmates and you’re now our one and only manager. The least we can do is make sure you don’t get lost again.”  
  
“ _Again_?”  
  
“Kita San told us you were in a tizz yesterday because you couldn’t find where you were looking for and ended up lost.”  
  
“I’m really gonna punch that little cretin in the throat if he keeps talking shit behind my back.”  
  
“Uwah, don’t mess with Kita San; he’s scarier than he looks, y’know?”  
  
“Then you better hurry the hell up before he finds out your late to play sports.”  
  
Holding out his elbow, Osamu returned both hers and his own bag to his shoulder. “Let’s go then.”  
  
Pulling a face, Hanabusa pushed herself up and held her hand out for her belongings. “I just told you I’m not an invalid; I can walk and carry my shit all by myself, thanks.”  
  
“I’m trying to help.”  
  
“Then treat me like a normal person.”  
  
“A normal girl doesn’t have that much physical strength. Like, really, what the hell kinda ‘roids you on to almost yank me over when you’re clearly unwell?”  
  
Hanabusa glanced up as they passed through the doorway to give a glare to the grey haired boy to her left but halted herself from getting pulled into the idiocy. At her left, Suna took out a handful of slim fruit-jelly sticks. Holding them out, he offered the girl one.  
  
“Don’t mind him; he and Tsumu share a single brain cell.”  
  
Shaking her hand at the offering, Hanabusa declined under the reason that she disliked sweet things before nodding at Suna’s remark. “I don’t know any of you yet, but it seems like a team full of…interesting characters.”  
  
“Just wait until you actually sit through a full practice.” Slowing when he noticed the sign for the library, Suna pointed to the double-doors. “This is you. Don’t forget to register for a library card while you’re here.”  
  
“O-oh, yeah. Thanks for reminding me.” Eyes sliding past the pair, Hanabusa pointed to the window. “You really better hurry up, look.” Looking to the direction, both boys saw the rest of their class filing out onto the field. “You’re not even changed yet. You’re going to get into trou-”  
  
Before she could finish her sentence, the pair a few feet in front of her pulled their pants down. Shrill exclamation stuck in the back of her throat, Hanabusa blinked thrice before she realized that they were already wearing their shorts underneath their uniform. Sweat sucking back up into her pores, the new student felt her skin tighten. “Just how much do you guys like sports?”  
  
Hopping from one foot to the other, the male pair kicked off their pants and began unbuttoning their shirts. “Damn, it’s cold. I hate winter.” Mid-way through undressing, a teacher turned the corner. In varying states of undress, the pair glanced from the teacher, to the girl, and then to each other. “It’s not what it looks like.”  
  
“Really, because it looks like you’re stripping in front of the new girl.”  
  
“Okay, maybe it’s a _little_ bit what it looks like…”  
  
Glancing to Suna, Osamu scooped up his belongings. “Run!”  
  
“W-Oi! Don’t run away from me; I know who you are, you pair of morons.”  
  
Already dashing around the corner of the long hallway, Suna waddling as he only had one shoe on and Osamu with his shirt fluttering behind him as it was attached via a single sleeve, the pair were gone in a blink. The teacher turned to look at Hanabusa, who in turn gave a shrug and an expression which said she had no clue what had just happened.  
  
“They didn’t do anything to you, did they?”  
  
“They were still able to use their legs, weren’t they?” Pushing open one of the library doors, she lowered her voice as not to be attacked by the librarian perched at the reception area right beside the barrier. “They were just running late due to helping me after I had a bit of a turn in class. It wasn’t their fault.”  
  
“Don’t go getting into the habit of making excuses just because they’re popular or attractive.”  
  
“Believe me, I’ll be the last person to do that.”  
  
Just as Hanabusa was about to step into the deadly silent space, the teacher halted her. “Why are you not taking part in gym class.”  
  
“Medical issues.”  
  
“Do you have a pass?”  
  
Sucking in a breath, she took the slip of paper from the outer portion of her bag and handed it over. Watching the older woman read over the note with the same scrutinizing eyes she was used to when it came to this specific thing, the transfer tried her best not to huff. It was the same no matter where she went; she’d been dealing with her condition for just over three years and without fail, people were always ready to discredit her. It’s not like she enjoyed sitting in a stuffy library when everyone else was out playing with their friends. Who the hell wanted to be looked at like they were a malingerer.  
  
Giving the pass back to the girl, the teacher looked down her nose despite barely reaching the silver haired girl’s shoulder. “Don’t take advantage of the privilege that note gives you.”  
  
“I won’t be here long enough to.”  
  
“Excuse me?”  
  
Back-stepping, Hanabusa looked over her shoulder. “I said, _I won’t be here long enough to_.”  
  
Not expecting a reply after giving her best tone of authority, the short teacher huffed and continued on her way.  
  
Venturing into the space filled with bookcase upon bookcase stacked to the brim - as one would expect from a library, Hanabusa stood at the check-out area without a word until the young girl behind the desk noticed her. Finishing adding sticky notes to a trolley of books behind her, the girl wearing the school uniform turned around with a bright smile.  
  
“Hello, what can I help you with?”  
  
Hanabusa felt her heart squeeze at the bright welcome. For the first time since stepping foot on the school’s grounds, she felt genuinely alleviated. “I’m new and need a library card. Also, I’ll be spending gym period in here.”  
  
“I can help you with both,” typing away at the keyboard below the desktop, the petite girl with caramel twin-tails reached under the worktop to retrieve a print-out. “If you have your school ID with you and you fill out this form, I can do it for you now.”  
  
Expelling a heavy breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding, Hanabusa was glad to come across someone normal. Placing her ID on the counter which rounded the girl around her age, she set out to immediately fill out what had been given to her with serious glowering intent.  
  
“Eh~ You’re the new Senpai that everyone’s talking about.”  
  
Almost writing her name wrong due to the remark, Hanabusa glanced up. “This is literally the second day I’ve been on campus; what can people possibly have to talk about?”  
  
“Ouh, I didn’t mean to offend you.”  
  
“I’m not offended, just confused.”  
  
“Inarizaki isn’t an easy school to get into unless it’s down to some kind of scholarship or a lot of hard work, but I heard you change schools a lot.”  
  
 _‘Jesus Christ, how fast does news travel at this place?’_ Continuing her writing, the transfer hummed. “I have decent grades and my father is an alumnus. Plus, I won’t be here too long, so it’s more of a temporary thing.”  
  
“That’s a shame. I heard you really stuck it to that creeper, Yamato Sensei during form class.”  
  
“E-eh?”  
  
“The man is a real weirdo, always has been.” Flapping her hand, the girl behind the desk chuckled. “He’s been caught watching the girl’s gym classes from the windows loads of times. Like, the glass was actually steaming up.”  
  
Hanabusa never put much stock in gossip, and she certainly didn’t enjoy taking part in it, but the way the girl told the tale held no malice whatsoever.  
  
“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself.” Struggling to get up off her seat, the small girl bowed. “I’m Sasaki Kirie, first year.”  
  
Noticing the crutch propped against the inside of the desk and the unstable teeter she was way more than familiar with, Hanabusa nodded upwards. “What’s your damage?”  
  
“O-oh, this…” her eyes dropped with her shoulders and her hands went directly to cover her right leg despite wearing jogging bottoms beneath her uniform skirt. “I had hot cooking oil spilt on my leg a couple of weeks ago during Home Ec.”  
  
“Holy shit, I hope it’s not too serious.”  
  
“It’s likely to leave a scar, so it looks like it’s tights for me all year round after I get the bandages off.” Despite her heavy words, there was a small smile on her lips.  
  
Hanabusa knew that look. She didn’t know the girl, but she felt an irrationally strong desire to wipe that gloom right off her face. “Who gives a shit about a scar or two? I have a ton, look.” Pulling up the hem of her shirt despite hating her body more than anything, Hanabusa pointed to her left side. The entirety of her left torso from under her bra to past the waistline of her tights was marbled by thick, textured scarring. “I was in a car accident when I was thirteen. I got burnt pretty badly, and I have stretch marks everywhere, and I’m always cutting and burning myself by accident. I’m pretty sure more of my skin is scarred than not at this point.”  
  
Sniffling, Sasaki held balled up fists to her eyes. “My family was really horrible about it. They said I’d have to have surgery because it’s ugly.”  
  
 _‘Gods, some people are just shitty from start to finish…’_ Readjusting her shirt, Hanabusa shook her head with bared teeth. “Everyone loses their looks over time, but there are a lot of people who are ugly inside from the very beginning.” Finishing stamping her family seal on the bottom of the form, she handed it over with a packet of tissues from the front compartment of her bag. “Don’t let people who judge you on your outward appearance alone dictate to you when you clearly have a lot more to offer besides your looks.”  
  
“Ha-hck-Hanabusa San…”  
  
“Stop snivelling now, come on. It’s unsightly, and you should have enough pride to pull yourself together.”  
  
“You’re the first person who’s been kind to me since I started here.”  
  
“I hardly find that surprising: this place is full of weirdos, conceited pricks, and bullies.”  
  
A small chuckle escaped swollen lips as Sasaki tried to return the packet of tissues. “You really call ‘em as you see ‘em, don’t you?” Her Kansai accent slipped out thicker than intended and the older girl couldn’t help but to grin at how cute it sounded coming from the upset girl.  
  
“I don’t see the point in putting on airs or acting out of character for someone elses’ sake. I’ve been to too many places and seen the same shit over and over, and over again. People are generally fuck-tards no matter where you go. It’s a fact that can’t be helped, so why bother wasting _your_ time with them when you can do what you enjoy and prepare for your own future?”  
  
“What do you enjoy, Hanabusa San?”  
  
Hanabusa trawled through her memories. She had enjoyed lots of things when she was younger but her ailing health and weight gain had prevented her from taking any of them further than middle school. Regardless of how she looked now, she used to be very active as a child. And fearless - she would go swimming in rivers, pick up strange bugs, and climb trees so high you could see entire towns. Honestly, she wished she could go back to being like that but now, she could barely force herself to stomach a petty argument without her body going into blue-screen mode.  
  
“I guess the only thing that’s stuck is Shogi.” Putting her personal effects back into her bag as her library card was laminated, the taller girl looked up at the halogen strip lights. “I’m too unfit to do anything else any more.”  
  
“W-w-what?” Pointing a shaking finger at the older girl’s torso, Sasaki spluttered. “Hanabusa San, I saw abs when you lifted up your shirt!”  
  
“I draw them on every morning when I brush my teeth.”  
  
“I really can’t tell if you’re being serious when you say it with an expression like that.”  
  
“It’s just remnants I’m trying to cling to. Not really abs, but I do have strong hips and legs!” She held up a victorious bicept in a hero-pose.  
  
“It may be weird to ask, but…can we be friends?”  
  
“Why’s it weird?”  
  
“You’re a year above me.”  
  
“So what? I just got here, too.” Shrugging off her bag and blazer from her previous school and placing them on an empty space by a stack of books on the worktop, Hanabusa cracked her neck and finger joints out of habit. “I never really liked the stuffy hierarchy BS anyway.”  
  
“So, I can address you as Hanabusa Senpai?”  
  
“Just call me Rei; it makes me uncomfortable when people I know try to use honorifics.”  
  
“I can’t do that!”  
  
“Says who?”  
  
“I really just can’t.” Fiddling with her fingers, the makeshift receptionist spoke sheepishly. “Reika Senpai?”  
  
“Uh, if that’s what your most comfortable with, it’s fine by me.”  
  
“You’re really a lot more laid-back than I expected.”  
  
“I’m a prime example of why you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover - or its rumours.” Poofing out a burst of air through puckered lips, dimples on the outside became prominent. “Huuu~ I’m so punny.”  
  
“Can I ask you something else?” Hanabusa nodded without missing a beat as she slot her new card into one of the designated slots in her wallet. “I saw Miya San and Suna San walk you to the door…Are you really the new manager for the volleyball team? ”  
  
“Apparently so.”  
  
“What does that even mean?”  
  
“It’s a long story; I’ll tell you over lunch if you don’t have somewhere else to be.”  
  
“Y-you want to have lunch with me?”  
  
“Shall I say it’s a date?”  
  
“Please don’t tease me like that.”  
  
“I’m not going to eat you. You can ask me whatever you like.” Unfurling a roll of paperwork with copies of her transcript, classes, and campus map, the silver haired girl scoured over the information with her notebook open. “I’d rather people do that than just make up their own stories in their head.”  
  
“Actually, before you think I started speaking to you for just this reason, I want to tell you something.”  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“Ohmuhgaaaahh, it’s too embarrassing to say out loud.”  
  
“Are you going to tell me, or no?”  
  
“I have a crush on one of the members.”  
  
“As most people do - I’ve began to gather.”  
  
“No, it’s not like that. I went to the same middle school as him.”  
  
“Let me guess: he saved you from a bully?”  
  
“No, but yes… no, that wasn’t the reason.”  
  
“Girl, make your mind up; I’m getting dizzy.”  
  
“He was the class mood-maker.” Staring off like the heroine of a Shōjo manga, Sasaki was on the verge of doing the shy finger-prod cliche. “It wasn’t really a surprise because he did the same for everyone, but he always got me a card on my birthday and got angry when people picked on me. I thought I could get over it, but he greeted me by name when he passed me after the welcoming ceremony.” Covering her face with both hands, Sasaki squirmed in her seat, her voice pushing out several keys higher. “I wanted to fix it, but I really do still like him. Whhhuuuu-kyaaahh~”  
  
“I don’t even know what that noise was. Honestly, I can say I’ve never heard a person make that sound, but if you truly feel that way, shouldn’t you just tell him?”  
  
“W-w-w-what?! No! I can’t do that!”  
  
“Why not?”  
  
“You really have no idea how this place works, do you?”  
  
“Humans are the same, no matter the place.” Leaning both of her elbows on the desk separating them, Hanabusa rested her chin atop her left palm. “If you tell a boy you like them in earnest, they will lose their shit - it really doesn’t matter who it is. Even if their friends make jokes about it in the beginning, when they’re on their own, they will fly into full-blown retard mode.”  
  
“You seem to know a lot-”  
  
Shielding her eyes in a dramatic weeb pose, Hanabusa threw her hand out, a long index nail a few inches from Sasaki’s face, “however!”  
  
“ _However_?”  
  
“They’re all idiots to begin with so we’re the ones who have to be brave and drop hints like it’s Hiroshima all over again.”  
  
“I think that’s gonna offend a lot of people if you use that analogy anywhere else.”  
  
Clearly ignoring the warning, the transfer pulled over a chair from one of the many table set-ups. Plonking herself down on the hard wooden seat, Hanabusa rested her forearms on the worktop, her head bobbing in lethargy. “No matter what, men are dense when it comes to small signs - you have to be blunt, even if you think you’re gonna come across the idiot or too forward.”  
  
“I know I said we should be friends, but it feels like you just expelled a weight of pain into the air.” Brow raised as she tilted her head to the female now at a lower eye-line, Sasaki made a concerned sound. “Are you okay, Senpai?”  
  
“I need to learn how to volleyball, but I’m so dead inside and out that I can barely make my lungs function.”  
  
“Do you want a warm drink? We have tea, coffee, and hot-chocolate. Not like you can drink them as you read though…”  
  
“Stop being so kind, Kirie Chan. Or so I’d usually say to those putting on the act.” Flinging her arms into the air in a last-ditch attempt to motivate herself, the new girl sounded as if she was about to transform under a full moon. Collecting herself after the temporary loss of composure the younger girl seemed to think the older girl had any kind of grip on, Hanabusa rolled out of her chair with wildly blinking eyes and a yawn. “Can you tell me where the sports section is?”  
  
“It’s the back two rows.”   
  


* * *

  
  
**Updated:** 14th December 2020 - 14:14


	4. Three-Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goddamnnnnn, this took forever to finish editing. I guess that's what I get for writing after having a few too many. (ノ_<。)  
> Sorry to those I promised an earlier update to. I don't have a set schedule but I do have most of the story written already, so I'll try to update at least once a week (￣`Д´￣)9

  
  


  
Just under an hour had passed and the new girl was neck deep in her third pile of books. She’d had a quick skim over a few volleyball and sport strategy books until a migraine began to threaten her. Giving herself a break from scowling at the small words without her contact lenses or glasses to aid her, Hanabusa had offered to make a deal with the makeshift librarian: She would do the leg-work of collecting and replacing the books if Sasaki in return gave her a bit of a head’s up about how the place really worked. Because for all intents and purpose, what she had been told by the teacher overseeing her induction was practically nil. She signed her legal documents; been handed a map, class schedule, her exemption pass, and pretty much been sent on her way. She’d been picked on during her morning classes by both students and her teachers, pulled off the hook by who she found to be one of the most sought after boys in school, and then…well, we don’t really need an entire play-by-play, but it was fair enough to say that it was going to be a toss-up of how the day ended.  
  
“Thanks for helping me out, Reika Senpai. It’s really saved me a lot of time - it would usually take me about three days to do this much because of my hobbling.”  
  
“It’s no trouble at all. I prefer to be moving even if my body doesn’t and I was starting to get eye-strain poring over those tiny explanations at the back of the book every time I didn’t understand something,” Hanabusa called from the back row as she collected yet another pile in order to bring them to the front desk so the addressed didn’t have to keep getting up. “Which happened to be every other line…”  
  
The bell rang and in less than a minute and a half, four members of the volleyball team stepped into the stuffy room. Behind them, another second and first year, according to their designated tie colours.  
  
Ginjima scouted the space, his recollection coming out as a remark rather than internal as he had planned. “Ouah, I’ve never been in here-”  
  
“-Results prove so,” Suna muttered under his breath as he rounded the reception desk to let the others filter into the space.  
  
“Shut the fuck up, you goddamn nerd.”  
  
The youngest of the six boys glanced between his seniors with a worried look, “shouldn’t we be quiet?”  
  
Hissy-whispering amongst the boys thinned when Suna pointed around. “Is Hanabusa San still h-ouh, there she is…”  
  
Coming around the corner with a pile of books so high she couldn’t see past them, she dropped the load on the counter with a wobble. “Don’t loom. You’re scary to normal people.”  
  
“That’s rude.”  
  
“You’re all almost six foot and over, and we’re two girls in a murky room. It’s absolutely frightening.”  
  
Stepping onto his back foot to look the girl standing close in the eye without giving himself a double-chin, Aran made a strange expression. “When you make that kind of face, it’s hard to believe you’re scared of anything at all.”  
  
“Ojiro Senpai, why are you loitering in the library when the third years have mock exams?”  
  
Pulling his upper lip inside the lower, the Ace glanced down at the girl who met his shoulder. “How do you know that?”  
  
“I asked Coach Kurosu when I saw him on the way in this morning.”  
  
“The coach gets here at 7:30.”  
  
“I’m aware.”  
  
“Why were you here at _7:30_?”  
  
“I wanted to try and memorize where the classes are.”  
  
“How are you doing?”  
  
“I got most down, but the majority of the science, art, home ec and wood-work blocks are locked at that time so I don’t know where the rest rooms are in those places yet.”  
  
“Are you being serious?”  
  
“This may be too much information for you, but when I need to find a private cubicle - I need to make a Bee-line. It’s no joke.”  
  
“I’m not going to ask, but if you feel like you need to tell me, I’ll be here.”  
  
“Why are you saying it like that?”  
  
“I’m talking about your condition-”  
  
“-I know that’s not optimal for what I’ve not-so signed up for, but I promise I’ll try as best I can to make sure it doesn’t interfere with your club.”  
  
Eyes softening and shoulders slackening, Aran’s lip plucked in on the left. “Some things can’t be helped. Just do you’re best.” Raising his arm, a giant hand patted the top of her head twice. “We’re looking forward to seeing what you can do.”  
  
To Suna’s right, the youngest boy inspected the various posters on the walls. “I’ve never actually been in here since the induction either. I need to read up on Natsume Souseki for the upcoming test and I don’t want to have to buy a copy just for that.”  
  
Turning her head from her senior, Hanabusa wagged her nail. “I’d say buy a copy if you enjoy reading; it’s a very interesting look on loneliness and trying to find peace within oneself.” Sweat trickling from under her hair and still on the verge of panting, she clung to the reception desk. “If not, Kirie Chan can help you with finding one to borrow so you can study.”  
  
Scanning the top row of volumes containing classical Greek art, Suna’s brow quirked at the statue of Venus de Milo. “ _Kirie Chan_? You got friendly fast.” Holding it down a little so Ginjima could take a peek, the middle blocker and wing spiker shared a snigger for the armless, bare-breasted sculpture.  
  
Wafting her arms and trying to mouth the situation unknown to the boys in her year, she slid along a table top and jabbed the second years on the upper arm with the middle knuckle of her index finger. Sliding out in front of them, she held up a piece of paper stating, _‘do NOT get in the way - crushes abound - Don’t even speak a word.’_ Catching a glance of what they were giggling like school girls at, Hanabusa blinked slowly. “Is dismemberment a group kink, or…?”  
  
Getting the gist of the aggressive facial expressions - and the odd question - Suna, Ginjima and the other younger boys fell into line - Aran behind them scowling with a disapproving look for the lechery. “We just came to collect our manager…”  
  
“Number 5-Kun, I don’t believe we share any classes.”  
  
“N-numb- _I’m Ginjima_.”  
  
“Hey, guys, were are you going?” Still holding up three different editions of Kokoro by the aforementioned Natsume, the first-year Wing Spiker’s head snapped left and right. “Hang on, I need to find out which is the right one and check it out-”  
  
“-Number 14-Kun-”  
  
“That’s _Riseki Heisuke_ ,” Aran cut in from over Hanabusa’s left shoulder.  
  
“She doesn’t even know my name…”  
  
“You’re in the same class and you know each other, right?” Not even waiting for a reply, the newcomer continued as she put her notepad and as many books would fit into her bag before slapping a sticky tab on the rest. “Kirie Chan’s on crutches and we have Home Ec next, which is in the opposite end of the building from you two, so can you give her a hand after she’s helped you find what you’re looking for?”  
  
Blustering, Riseki glanced back and forth between his senior making the request, the temporary librarian, and then his teammates. “O-of course! I’m sorry Sasaki Chan, I didn’t realise you were having such a hard time.”  
  
Head down, Sasaki tweaked her fingertips when she was faced with her long-time crush. “I didn’t expect you to notice.”  
  
“That’s not the point. We used to be pretty close in middle school, didn’t we? I should have offered to help you.”  
  
“Kirie Chan, I’ll either pick these other books up later or on Monday.” Ushering her fellow second-years out of the library, Hanabusa gave a thumbs-up to her first friend and mouthed, _‘Go for it. Fighting!’_ behind the male first-year’s back. Halting for a split second, the older girl leaned in close to Riseki on her back-foot with the face of a demon as Aran shaded her. Frown-lines and shadow covering the top half of her face, striking peridot eyes bore into his. “You better not let her walk up or down stairs on her own.”  
  
Face twitching at the expression he was receiving more than the proximity, Riseki held up his hand as if he was swearing an oath to someone higher than God. “Y-yes….Senpai…Manager San?”  
  
Straightening up only to flop forward under the weight she was carrying - both her bag and body - Hanabusa left the library with a grumbling complaint for how she already disliked how big the school campus was. As soon as the group had passed through the chaotic corridor and descended into the stairwell filled with students changing classes, Hanabusa spat a curse as if it was a hiccup. “Ah, shit.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“I forgot to give her my contact details.”  
  
“I’ll head bac-”  
  
“No! This could actually be perfect.”  
  
“How so?”  
  
“Message number 14-Kun and tell him to pass on the details from Kirie Chan.”  
  
“He’s called Riseki Heisuke…”  
  
“How does that help; we’re literally less than a hundred yards away. I can run back.”  
  
“Jesus, boys really are dim.” Squeezed between the solid shoulders of Suna and Aran as other students rushed on their own way, Hanabusa tried to use her arms to articulate but only looked like a T-Rex having a seizure with her elbows forced to her ribs and smushing her breasts. “That girl has had a crush on him since middle school - can you not even see that I’m trying to help her get a chance at talking to him while they’re naturally on their own?”  
  
“But it wasn’t natural; _you_ set them up.”  
  
“ _You_ only know that because I outright told you so. If I didn’t say a word, you lot would probably still be in there lingering, roasting each other and getting jollies off nude Grecian statues.”  
  
“So?”  
  
“Which would prevent them from talking alone.”  
  
“Oh. Ouhhh…so if you-then they-ah, I get it.”  
  
Peering up with a waddle, Hanabusa quirked her brow. “Do you though?”  
  
“Just barely.”  
  
“I thought as much.”  
  
A cloud of dejection hung over the heads of the younger boys at the underhanded jab to their intelligence. “We have a longer practice tonight because it’s a Friday. Is that okay with you, Hanabusa Chan?” Aran asked as he rooted through his bag as if in search for something.  
  
“I have no other obligations - I just need pointing in the direction of the right transport when we’re done because I haven’ta clue where the hell I am.”  
  
“Won’t you need to call your parents,” the second-year stranger mused aloud.  
  
“I’m living alone for the time being.”  
  
“Giving out relationship help and living alone, while having a life-lesson-teaching role: are you trying to become the heroine of a manga?”  
  
“If that was the case, I would have been hit by Truck-Kun and have a harem by now.”  
  
“Well… we can see why Kita San asked you to join the fold…” Eyes blank and straight ahead, the boys hummed unanimously when Ginjima spoke his mind. “You were equally dark and optimistic in one sentence with a straight-face.”  
  
“Why do you refer to things as ‘Insert-Kun?’ Just learn their names.”  
  
Sucking in as much air as she could as soon as they filed out into the ground floor and she was allowed to take a breath not laden with somebody elses body odour, Hanabusa glanced up with a thoughtful finger to her lower lip. “You’re right. How silly of me, I really should have asked that lorry his given name last time he ran through a puddle and soaked me.”  
  
“What even is this conversation any more?”  
  
Furrowing her brows, the new girl finally clicked that something was different from earlier that morning. “Where’s Osamu?”  
  
“Uhouh, she addressed him informally.” Ginjima snorted and Suna’s eyes narrowed, likely in confusion rather than anything hostile but Hanabusa was figuring it would be hard to tell either way.  
  
“She calls people by their bib number and gives vehicles honorifics: are you really trying to keep track of how her mind works?”  
  
Rolling her eyes at the two boys taller than her by at least a head, Hanabusa wiped the sweat from her forehead with a pocket tissue. “I can’t very well call him Miya - there’s two of them.”  
  
Lengthy, heavy sighs expelled as a phantom muscle-ache took hold of those in the volleyball team. “We know. We _really_ already know.”  
  
“He had to go to the store to pick up ingredients for the next class,” Suna piped up as if the prior half hour’s conversation hadn’t happened. He knew it had - he just blocked it out and made his way via auto-pilot. “He brought the stuff but Tsumu ate half of it while we were taking gym.”  
  
Mouth ajar and brow twitching, Hanabusa croaked. “So he went to get more?”  
  
“He takes his cooking very seriously.”  
  
“I should have asked him to pick mine up, too.”  
  
“Heh? That’s not what I was expecting you to say.”  
  
“I thought it was a theory lesson.” Pulling out her purse blindly, her eyes darted as one of her borrowed books fell to the floor. “How close is the nearest store?”  
  
“Too far to get back in time.”  
  
Rubbing his chin, Aran hummed in serious thought. “I doubt even Akagi could make that dash in time by now.”  
  
“Shiii-”  
  
“It’ll be fine; it’s your first day.” Ginjima told as he inched away from the girl in the throes of a neurotic breakdown. “We get given out a letter a week before we have to actually make anything; nobody is expecting you to carry around ingre-”  
  
“-But I wanted to show off for once.”  
  
“You’ve been here a day. _Chill._ ”  
  
Walking over to the main locker space by the front entrance, the group of six were almost bowled over by the missing talk of the minute. “Did I make it?”  
  
“I call that a record - seventeen minutes. Nice one,” Ginjima went to give his teammate a high five but the Spiker missed when he stumbled forward with bags hanging off his wrists.  
  
Osamu dropped his entire weight into the closest body with a heavy grunt, “I’m dead.”  
  
“You’re sticking to my skin and yanking my hair…” Glancing up, Osamu was met by cleavage and a dead-stare. “At _least_ buy, or rather - in this situation - _make_ me dinner first.”  
  
“Goddamn, you’re hot.”  
  
Hanabusa’s head cocked to the side and her words fell out flat, “excuse me?”  
  
“ ** _EXCUSE ME_**?” Aran grabbed the Spiker by his collar and yanked him up to his feet.  
  
“I mean, your body- wait-”  
  
Scowling at the taller boy, Ginjima spat in disgust. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”  
  
“I meant physically warm. Toasty, like a kotatsu.”  
  
Shaking his head in dismay for the fiasco, Suna made a face as if he’d been forced to down a gallon of sour milk. “I think anyone who describes a girl as a kotatsu should be arrested on the spot after being slapped.”  
  
The other second-year who wasn’t part of the volleyball team glanced amongst the others, clearly lost. “I don’t even get it.”  
  
Sneaking up on the congregation, a head of bleached hair popped up between Suna and a Freshman. “They’re really hot and you want to get into them-”  
  
Flying kicking the interloper, Ginjima shrieked, “that’s enough from you, you lewd narcissist!”  
  
Snorting so hard her breath caused Osamu’s eyes to force shut, Hanabusa cackled. “I think you used the wrong person as a PLP.”  
  
Floundering out of Aran’s grip and around after being ragged and kicked, Osamu choked on his own spit and tripped over his dropped shopping. “PLP? I’m sorr-I really didn’t mean to-are you okay?”  
  
“It’s the warmest I’ve been embraced in a long time, if that’s anything to go by...”  
  
Halting the foolery, the group of boys actually took notice of the female’s odd expression. Forgetting half-way through changing his shoes to the indoor pumps, Osamu muttered as he stared into the abyss of his locker. “I’m sorry for taking that from you.”  
  
Giving a demure, “hm, nnn,” and gentle head shake, the new girl glanced up. The usual dull glower was replaced with upturned crescents seeping with ulterior motives. “Just gimme a quarter of what you’ve got.”  
  
All the fantasy of femininity was blasted away when the girl’s attitude flipped a hundred and eighty degrees. Gob-smacked, the congregating boys were left dazed. “Hah? Is this daylight robbery?”  
  
“Absolutely.” Fixing her bag strap and plucking the front of her shirt to close the gape, Hanabusa nodded upwards nonchalantly. “Hit me up.”  
  
Jaw slack and eyes entirely white, Osamu gawked. “What?”  
  
Seemingly the only person in half the right mind at that moment, Aran rubbed his temples with closed eyes. “She means in home economy…”  
  
Amongst the chaos, Osamu blinked repeatedly, the rest of his features lax as if he was the village dolt. “Does she though…?”  
  
Staring at their number eleven, the members of the volleyball team pinched their lips, nodded in the same rhythm, and spoke in unison as if they were a choir. “Yes. Yes Osamu, all she wants is your home ec ingredients.”  
  
“ **She want’s tHAaaaT maaaNN-MEATTTT!** ”  
  
“Miya Atsumu, that’s a detention for you and your vile mouth!” A teacher’s voice rang from the other end of the corridor.  
  
Aran was already rubbing his hand from hitting the idiot with a chop to the side of the neck but at this rate, he wouldn’t be bothered if he had to endanger his life in order to beat the pair of morons within an inch of theirs.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
The cooking class had filled and gone to their designated stations. Reading over her paperwork, the cookery teacher looked to the girl left over who was tying her hair up. “Pair up with Suna and Miya; you’re familiar with them, aren’t you, _Manager Chan_?”  
  
Moving over to the work station where the boys were, Hanabusa tied her apron at the back of her waist unlike the others who could double and tie at the front. Shuffling to the sink underneath the window behind the pair, Hanabusa snatched three tea towels off the rack and stuffed them into the front of her pinafore before washing her hands. “Looks like it’s a three-way.”  
  
Straight-faced, Suna snorted milk out of his nose as Osamu blinked repeatedly with furrowed brows. Both of their sights in the opposite direction from the female, the pair fumbled with their itineraries when the girl nudged her way in between them. “Who’s prepping?”  
  
“Please be careful of your wording.”  
  
“It’s more efficient if someone peels, another chops the meat, and the other preps the eggs.”  
  
“I meant the three-way!” Osamu yelped, perhaps a little too loud.  
  
The girl hung her head and sniggered when some of the other students clattered their equipment and gasped. Much more within an appropriate volume, Hanabusa tried to temper her smirk. “Oh, come on. Don’t act like I’m offending your innocence after you greeted my boobs with your face only fifteen minutes ago.” Actually checking what their recipe for the day was, she scowled and gave a scoff. “Really, we’re learning to make omurice in our second year of high school? What kind of idiots do they take us for?”  
  
“Is omurice beneath you?”  
  
“It should be below all of our grade. Isn’t this one of the first things people learn to make in like…Elementary school?”  
  
“Is a split-personality part of your condition?”  
  
Pre-heating a sauté pan with butter, Hanabusa measured out the rice for two people. “I don’t have a split-personality.”  
  
“Every instance I’ve talked to you, you’ve been completely different.”  
  
“I like to keep people on their toes.” Sneaking a peak to the boys beside her, they couldn’t possibly be any different. Osamu was finely dicing the fresh ingredients with finesse while Suna was having a dire struggle trying to whisk eggs in a bowl. “Besides, I find it pointless to make small-talk and be all nicey-nicey when I have no intention of forming a relationship with someone. However, we’re now part of the same club so let’s speak informally, yeah?” Leaning back behind Osamu, she tapped Suna on his shoulder. “Was that salt or sugar you just put in there?”  
  
The middle-blocker blinked at the contents of the bowl, to what were identical tubs to him, and then stared at her for a few seconds before answering. “What’s it matter?”  
  
Hanabusa glanced up to Osamu, who in turn gave a look which told her everything she needed to know. “This. _This_ is why we make omurice, and not French cuisine.”  
  
“If nothing else, I guess I should be grateful of knowing what the standards are right off the bat…”  
  
“There’s no need to be polite. A good ninety-nine percent of the participants are like this; it’s both infuriating and hilarious.”  
  
“Wasting food isn’t funny to me - it’s a goddamn catastrophe.” Sticking her finger in the raw egg mixture, Hanabusa tested the waters which may as well have been pure food poisoning. “It tastes…way too sweet….” Her entire face screwed up, akin to someone gnawing on raw-sugar slurry.  
  
“Throw it; I bought a dozen eggs. We can start over.”  
  
“I’m not throwing it. That’s four whole eggs; lend me two more and I’ll save it.”  
  
“How can you save a bust with more of the same?”  
  
“Pardon you.” Reaching for the sugar and pilfering some vanilla extract from another station as she gave a fantastical turn around a nightmare another pair were about to have with melted sugar and cold water, Hanabusa wagged either index finger as both hands ‘procured’ ingredients from other tables. “I happen to be the Queen of food revival.” Setting down her scavenged goods, she began heating a quart of cream left over, vanilla flavour and the bowl of janky eggs Suna had somehow devastated.  
  
“You’re pretty confident at making these outlandish statements.”  
  
“Nah, it’s just that the statements I make seem outlandish to people who aren’t willing to push.”  
  
Watching the girl whizz around the kitchen, Osamu almost forgot it was his turn to check the pans on the hob. “Is that what you do,” he asked, their backs brushing when they switched sections of the station, “push?”  
  
Flinging the oven door shut with the back of her ankle as the teacher called half-time, Hanabusa rolled along the counter edge with her nail pointing towards the ceiling. “I like to, but some people just can’t be helped when they don’t pay attention.”  
  
“I can’t agree more.”  
  
“You do know that you forgot to put your onions into the fried rice, right?”  
  
“W-what?”  
  
“Don’t open my oven;” Grinning, she rested the front of her hips against the counter between the pair on her team and whispered, “you’ll ruin my creme pudding.”  
  
“We were making omurice-”  
  
“-Never dismiss seemingly insignificant things that most people want to throw away just because you have some grand idea or they’re not part of your plan.”  
  
“Is that what you read from on of your new library books?”  
  
Cleaning down their work-space, washing her hands, and bringing an actual pen to the fight after washing their equipment, Hanabusa loomed over the taller pair who were now lounging around as if they had all day. “Are you talking about using cheap or ‘useless’ things, or something else?”   
  
  
  


* * *

* * *

Updated: 23rd December 2020 - 16:22


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